Readers Respond to the Question: Are You an Artist?

How do Next Avenue readers love the arts? Let us count the ways.

In a recent survey, we asked Next Avenue readers some serious questions about arts participation. We were so impressed by the response that we decided to have a little fun and ask you to share more about your creative endeavors and why you make art. As usual, you did not disappoint.

Here are some of our favorite answers chosen from the dozens and dozens submitted (you can also see highlights from them in the video at the end of this article):

Because It Soothes Us

Don Wendorf, 69, music and songwriting: “Why do birds sing? My music and writing helped me survive and cope while I was taking care of my late wife and now I use them when I speak to other caregivers, primarily of persons with dementia, to help them with their emotional struggles.”

Janice Williams, 66, abstract and mixed media: “Keeps me sane.”

Judith, 63, mixed media paintings: “It helps to keep me connected with my mom, who I Iost in 2013. She was a gifted artist and I love using her paints, papers and brushes in my own work.”

I create art because to do so is to remain fully alive.

— Daniel C. Potts

Yvonne Evand, 57, pastels: “I started creating art to push my recovery from a stroke in a new direction.”

Linda Domeier, 66, fiber work: “Enjoy colors, textures, has always been a part of my life. Also extremely comforting these days of chaos!”

Cheryl Keith, 59, drawings, paintings and embroidery: “It’s been trapped in my soul since I stopped painting in high school. I became disabled three years ago. I started to dabble again, 40 years after my last painting.”

Because It Gives Us Purpose

Laura, 58, knitting, art journaling: “I have always been a creative person. Now I am being advised to stop working due to health complications. My art gives purpose to my days.”

Nancy Lewis Shell, 61, quilting, painting, designing clothes, photography, writing: “In 1999, I became disabled. I was sad and bereft. I lost my livelihood and raison d’etre. I had an experience where the higher power spoke to me and told me why I had been taken out of my teaching profession. That my reason new and old for being was to make art.”

Cornelia DeLee, 68, acrylic paintings: “To create is to participate in the nature of God, so I express my faith in the one who makes all things new. Art is also an activity which allows me to meditate on beauty, life, nature, hope, and joy.”

Because It Connects Us

Vickie Davies, 61, watercolors: “I create art for the joy, the endorphin release, the accomplishment. I teach watercolor painting so I can share the magic of working in this medium.”

Ian Cross, 49, printmaking, drawing, works on paper: “Art making provides a different way of seeing that can provide a dialogue for the maker and the viewer. This combination is like listening and speaking and so it is also a way to pause and reflect on life.”

Nancy Ray, 61, singing: “I sing backup vocals in my son’s band.”

Daniel C. Potts, 51, poetry, photography, music: “I create art because it helps me to connect with myself, with God, and with the world around me. … I create art because to do so is to remain fully alive. Finally, I am inspired to create art by my late father, Lester, who became an acclaimed watercolor artist after the diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease, having never painted previously.”

Cydette Marshall, 51, Hawaiian featherwork, Ukrainian pysanky eggs, Japanese ball embroidery: “A huge part of happiness for me is being able to make art and sharing it with the world.”

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Heidi Raschke is a longtime journalist and editor who previously was the Executive Editor of Mpls-St. Paul Magazine and Living and Learning Editor at Next Avenue. Currently, she runs her own content strategy and development consultancy.@heidiraschke

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